Department of Oncology, Hematology, Gastroenterology and Hepatology - Alfried Krupp Hospital in Essen-Ruettenscheid

About the Department of Oncology, Hematology, Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Alfried Krupp Hospital in Essen-Ruettenscheid

The Department of Oncology, Hematology, Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Alfried Krupp Hospital in Essen-Ruettenscheid provides the full range of medical services in the areas of its specialization. Patients receive both inpatient and outpatient treatment – the choice of the therapy regimen depends on the severity of the clinical case. The team of oncologists and hematologists cooperate closely with the Department of Radiation Therapy. The two departments jointly form an interdisciplinary Cancer Center with over 50 beds for inpatients. In addition, the specialists in the field of oncology fruitfully cooperate with the Bowel Cancer Center and the Breast Center certified by the German Cancer Society. Gastroenterology and hepatology are focused on medical care for patients with diseases of the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract, liver, gallbladder, bile ducts and pancreas. In addition to classical endoscopic and functional diagnostics, the department performs interventional endoscopic procedures, including for the treatment of early stages of gastrointestinal cancer. The department's medical team pays special attention to the individual needs and wishes of each patient, which has a beneficial effect on the successful treatment outcome. The department is headed by Prof. Dr. med. Burkhard Hennemann.

The department has an outpatient clinic where patients can undergo ultrasound and endoscopic examinations, as well as laboratory tests. In addition, the range of outpatient services includes chemotherapy, antibody therapy, other types of infusion therapy and blood transfusion. However, outpatient treatment is not suitable for all patients, and therefore the specialists of the medical facility often carry out inpatient treatment under close medical supervision. As a rule, hospitalization is required for complex diagnostic procedures and treatment that combines several methods. For example, chemoradiation therapy is performed only on an inpatient basis.

When cancer is detected, the department's specialists consider the clinical case at the tumor board, together with radiation therapists. The attending physician necessarily informs the patient about all possible treatment options, and they jointly select the most preferred methods. All diagnostic and therapeutic measures comply with modern clinical protocols and recommendations of the professional societies. If a bone marrow transplant is required, external partners specializing in this type of therapy are involved. The treatment of malignant hematopoietic diseases, such as leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and myelodysplastic syndrome, is of particular interest to the team of hematologists. Oncologists demonstrate excellent treatment success rates in patients with gastrointestinal, lung and breast malignancies. The department also specializes in palliative care for patients with advanced cancer.

The service range of the medical facility is complemented by the diagnostics and treatment of pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, liver, gallbladder, biliary tract and pancreas. The department has a progressive Endoscopy Unit where patients can undergo diagnostic examinations and interventional endoscopic procedures, including endoscopic mucosal resection and endoscopic submucosal dissection in early stages of gastrointestinal cancer. The treatment of chronic inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis), fecal incontinence, swallowing disorders and acute gastrointestinal bleeding is also the department's priority focus. The department is part of the specialized Pancreatic Center, and therefore it cooperates with abdominal surgeons and oncologists for effective treatment of pancreatic tumors, cysts and pseudocysts, acute and chronic pancreatitis, including especially severe types of chronic pancreatitis accompanied by the formation of cysts in the pancreas.

The department's main clinical focuses include:

• Oncology and hematology
  • Diagnostics
    • Laboratory tests
    • Functional tests
    • Imaging tests (in collaboration with the Department of Radiology)
  • Therapy
    • Chemotherapy
    • Antibody therapy
    • Multimodal therapy combining chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery (in collaboration with specialized doctors)
    • Infusion therapy
    • Blood transfusion
• Gastroenterology and hepatology
  • Diagnostics
    • Endoscopic diagnostics
      • Gastroscopy and colonoscopy, including endoscopic mucosal resection and endoscopic submucosal dissection, polypectomy with chromoendoscopy and zoom endoscopy
      • Proctoscopy
      • Capsule endoscopy and double balloon enteroscopy for examination of the small intestine
      • Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage, cholangioscopy
      • Endosonography, including bile duct ultrasound scanning and endosonography-guided puncture
    • Functional diagnostics
      • 24-hour pH monitoring and esophageal manometry (high resolution)
      • Functional diagnostics for constipation and fecal incontinence: manometry, endosonography, defecography
      • Hydrogen breath test with lactose, fructose and glucose
  • Therapy
    • Pharmacotherapy
    • Interventional endoscopic procedures
      • Feeding tube placement
      • Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy
      • Interventional procedures in the bile ducts: papillotomy, lithotripsy, cholangioscopy, stenting for eliminating bile duct stenosis and obstruction
      • Interventional procedures in the pancreas: pancreatic duct stenting, removal of stones from the pancreatic duct, drainage of pancreatic pseudocysts
      • Endoscopic mucosal resection and endoscopic submucosal dissection for the treatment of initial stages of cancer
      • Palliative endoscopic procedures for advanced cancer (balloon dilatation, stent implantation)
      • Radiofrequency ablation
      • Interventional endoscopic procedures for cessation of acute intragastric bleeding: clipping, argon plasma coagulation, sclerotherapy, varicose vein ligation, interventional therapy for small bowel bleeding using double balloon enteroscopy
      • Interventional endoscopic procedures for the treatment of esophageal motility disorders
• Other diagnostic and therapeutic options